Articulated connection for railway cars



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y 1957 w. R. WALTERS ARTICULATED CONNECTION FOR RAILWAY CARS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 1, 195a /O0O06OOOOOO0OOO0O0QO0 ted StatesP e O a 2,793,597 ARTICULATED CONNAljlCIION FOR RAILWAY William R. Walters, Cos Cob, Conn. Application May 1, 1953, Serial No. 352,504 9 Claims. (Cl. 105-8) This invention relates to improvement in articulated connection for railway cars and it consists of the matters hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide an improved and efiicient articulated connection between the adjacent open ends of two coupled together, open top railway cars of the general gondola type for carrying bulk material which connections shall afford a continuity of interiors of said cars and which shall be of simple construction for low cost production and easy application to said car ends, without appreciable material leakage, as during brake applications or as when such cars are taking relatively sharp curves and switches in the track, etc.

Another object of the invention is to provide in a connection of this kind, a novel arrangement of side panel engagement with parts of the sides of the car bodies and a novel arrangement of floor plate engagement with parts of the floors of the car bodies so that while said panels and plate slide in overlapping relation with said sides and floors, the panels may flex or yield to permit a limited relative lateral movement between said sides of the car.

Also it is an object of the invention to provide a rigid light weight flexible panel for use in the construction of the connection and a novel telescopic engagement and attachment of the ends of said panels with the sides of the car whereby the connection remains tight against leakage of the bulk material with which the cars are loaded.

The above mentioned objects of the invention along with others, as Well as the advantages thereof will more fully appear as the specification proceeds.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation of adjacent ends of two coupled together railway cars provided with the improved connection embodying the preferred form of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the parts appearing in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view through the improved construction as taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal detail sectional view through a part of the improved construction as taken on the line 4--4 of Fig. 1, and on a scale enlarged thereover.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a certain diaphragm or panel member embodied in the improved construction and which will be more fully described later.

Referring now in detail to that embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings and 11 indicate the adjacent. ends of two similarly constructed railway cars each of which embodies a suitable under frame 12- 12 mounted upon wheeled trucks 1313, the center sills of the frames carrying suitable couplers 1414 whereby the cars are coupled together with the ends adjacent but spaced apart at the coupling.

The underframe of each car supports an open top body of the general gondola type, at least one end being open for hauling bulk material such as. gravel, crushed rock, sand-and dirt and the like, each body including a floor 15 and upright sides 16.

ill

, 2,793,597 Patented May 28, 1957 To bridge the space between the floors 15-15 of the adjacent car ends there is provided a floor plate 17 which is of a length (longitudinally of the car) greater than the distance between the ends of the sides 16--16 of the cars so that end parts of the plate overlap parts of the floor of both cars, as best appears in Fig. 2. This plate is wider than it is long, one end thereof being pivoted on its median (longitudinal) line as at 18 to the part of the floor which it overlaps. The floor plate 17 is as wide as the floor of the cars, corner portions of said plate being removed as at 19, so that said plate has portions 20 at each side which are narrower than the length of said plate.

The end of each side 16 of each car has applied to its inner face a liner plate 21, one end 22 of which is fixed to the car side and the other end of which is spaced therefrom so as to coact therewith in. there forming a pocket like space 23. Each space extends the full height of the associated car side and also extends to a point beyond the planes of the front and rear edges of the plate 17. End parts of said plates 21 and sides 16 are removed just above the floor as at 24 in Fig. 1 to permit the side portions 20 of the floor plate to extend therethrough, as best appears in Figs. 1 and 2.

The open ends of the pockets like spaces 23 on each side of the car are adapted to receive the end margins of a diaphragm or panel 25 which best appears in Fig. 5 and which has a width approximating the length of the plate 17 and a height approximating that of the sides 16.

This panel comprises inner and outer rectangular sheet metal plates 2627 which are suitably secured along their vertical median line to opposite sides of a center spacing strip 28. Thus end portions of said plates, beyond the spacing strip, may yield toward each other. In the side margins of both plates are vertically spaced, horizontally elongated openings 29 so arranged that said openings in both plates register with each other and with suitable openings 30-31 (see Figs. 1 and 4) in each car side 16 and the portion 23 of each liner plate 21. Bolts 32 are passed through each set of registering openings 30-31 and slot like openings 29, from the inside of the car, a nut and washer- 33 being applied to the outer end of each bolt, with a spring 34 surrounding that part of each bolt between associated washer and side of the car as best appears in Fig. 4. With the springs arranged on the bolts as just above described they act to draw the liner portions 23 and portions of the side wall 16 toward each other with the margins of the plates 26-47 of each disposed between them in good snug relation. Thus the material of the load in the car cannot readily work out between the panels and the side walls of the cars.

In a brake application upon the cars they will move relatively longitudinally with the ends of the panels slidmg in the pocket like spaces 23, a distance approximating the length of the slot like openings 29. In this relative movement of the cars the floor plate 17 will slide upon the floor of the car 10.

When said cars are taking an appreciable curve in the track the panels 25' associated with the sides 16 on the inside of the curve will enter more fully into the pocket spaces 23 while the panels associated with the sides 16 on the outside of the curve will retract from said pockets. Inthis movement of the car taking the curve the sides 20 of the plate 17 will slide through the openings 24 and as the corners 19 of said plate are removed as before described the plate cannot bind in this movement.

Also the free end portions of the metal plates, i. e. the portions spaced from the center strip 28 can flex or yield as maybe necessary in taking sharp curves, switches and the like so that danger of imposing undue strains or stresses is avoided.

Thus the panel 25 and floor plate can float or move and also flex as necessary to accommodate relative movement between the car ends either in brake applications or in the taking of switches, curves and the like operations along the track.

With the improved construction the cars have an articulated connection between their adjacent ends and this in a manner affording a continuity between the interiors of said ends so that greater volumes can be carried by the two cars than is possible with two individual cars and this with but a minute leakage, if any, of the materialbeing carried at the connection. Such an articulate constructionfacilitates the movement of bulk material longitudinally of the cars, as is often necessary in various railway operations, particularly in connection with the operation of applying ballast conveying, or distributing dirt in connection with ballast cleaning work and the like.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright walls, means bridging that part of said space between and having end margins overlying and capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of said car bodies, panels each bridging that part of the spaces between the ends of associated upright walls on the same side of the car bodies and which panels each engage at the bottom with said bridging means, end margins of each panel overlapping and engaging fiatwise with parts of the associated upright walls of the car bodies, and means holding said margins of the panels in flatwise engagement with said parts of said associated upright walls of the car body while permitting a limited relative movement therebetween longitudinally of the ends of said car bodies.

2. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright walls, means bridging that part of the space between and having end margins overlying end parts of the fioor of both car bodies, means providing a vertical axis connection between one end margin of said bridging means and that part of the floor of one of the car bodies which it overlaps and by means of which said bridging means is capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of said car bodies, panels each bridging that part of the space between the ends of the associated upright walls on the same side of the car bodies and which panels engage at the bottom with said bridging means, end margins of each panel overlapping and engaging flatwise with parts of the associated upright walls of the car bodies, and means holding said margins of the panels in fiatwise engagement with said parts of'said associated upright walls of the car body while permitting relative movement therebetween longitudinally of the ends of the car bodies.

3. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright walls, means bridging that part of said space between and having end margins overlying but capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of said car bodies, panels each bridging that part of the spaces between the ends of associated upright walls on the same side of the car bodies and which panels each engage at the bottom with said bridging means, end margins of each panel overlapping and engaging fiatwise with parts of the associated upright walls of the car bodies, means, affording a yieldable bolt and slot connection between each margin of each panel and that part of the associated upright wall the same overlaps and engages, for yieldably holding said margins of the panels in fiatwise engagement with said parts of said associated upright walls of the car body while permitting a limited relative movement therebetween longitudinally of the ends of said car bodies.

4. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright wall providing means, means bridging that part of said space between and having end margins overlying but capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of said car bodies, panel means each bridging that part of the space between the ends of associated upright wall providing means, and which panel means each engage at the bottom with said bridging means, the end margins of of one of said panel or upright wall providing means including laterally spaced parts between which the end margins of the other of said means has sealed sliding telescopic engagement, and means holding the margins of both of said means on the same side of the car in engagement while permitting a limited relative movement therebetween longitudinally of said car bodies.

5. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright wall providing means, means bridging that part of said space between and having end margins overlying but capable-of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of said car bodies, panel means each bridging that part of the space between the ends of associated upright wall providing means, and Which panel means each engage at the bottom with said bridging means, the end margins of one of said panel or upright wall providing means including laterally spaced parts between which the end margins of the other of said means has sealed sliding telescopic en gagement, means affording a yieldable bolt and slot c0nnection between the margins of both of said means on the same side of the car bodies for yielding by holding said margins of both of said means on the same ide of the car body in flatwise engagement while permitting a limited relative movement therebetwcen longitudinally of the ends of said car bodies.

6. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright wall providing means, means bridging that part of said space between and hav ing end margins overlying but capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of said car bodies, panel means each bridging that part of the space between the ends of associated upright wall providing means, and which panel means each engage at the bottom with said bridging means, the end margins of one of said panel or upright wall providing means including laterally spaced parts between which the end margins of the other of said means has sealed sliding telescopic engagement, the margins of one of said means having horizontal slots therein and the margins of the other of said means having openings that register with said slots, bolts passing through said slots and openings and each carrying yielding means for acting through said bolts to draw said margins of both of said means into relatively tight engagement with each other;

7. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together'railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright walls composed of spaced apart inner and outer wall parts, means bridging that part of said space between and having end margins overlying but capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of the car bodies, panel means each bridging that part of the space between the ends of associated upright walls on the same side of the car body and each panel having end margins slidably engaged between the inner and outer wall parts of said upright walls on the same side of the car body and which panels each engage at the bottom with said bridging means, and means pressing the spaced apart wall parts at each end of the upright walls on the same side of the car body into engagement with the margins of the panels between them.

8. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright walls composed of spaced apart inner and outer wall parts, means bridging that part of said space between and having end margins overlying but capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of the car bodies, panel means each bridging that part of the space between the ends of associated upright walls on the same side of the car body and each panel having end margins slidably engaged between the inner and outer wall parts of said upright walls on the same side of the car body and which panels each engage at the bottom with said bridging means, said margins of said panels having horizontal slots therein which register with holes in the inner and outer wall parts engaged therein and spring pressed bolt means extending through the registering slots and holes for drawing said inner and outer wall parts into snug engagement with opposite faces of the panel margins between them.

9. In an articulated railway car construction, the combination of two coupled together railway car bodies having open confronting ends, the adjacent open ends of which are separated by a space, each car body including a floor and laterally spaced upright walls composed of spaced apart inner and outer wall parts, means bridging that part of said space between and having end margins overlying but capable of a limited coplanar movement relative to the ends of the floors of the car bodies, panel means each bridging that part of the space between the ends of the associated upright Walls on the same side of the car body, each panel including inner and outer plate .enrbers separated by a vertical spacing bar, whereby the end margins may flex toward and away from each other and which end margins are slidably engaged between the inner and outer Wall parts of said upright walls in the same side of the car body, and means pressing said wall parts into engagement with the margins of the panel means between them.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,678,821 Morgan July 31, 1928 1,944,993 Morgan Jan. 30, 1934 2,003,007 Morgan May 28, 1935 

